This document defines culture and discusses its mechanisms and functions. It defines culture as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, morals and habits acquired by people in society. Culture is transmitted between generations and reflects a group's way of life. Mechanisms of culture include folkways, mores, laws, institutions, and fashions. Culture provides behavioral patterns, maintains group functioning, and offers solutions to problems. The document also examines the dimensions, characteristics, types of cultural adaptation, and stages of adjusting to a new culture.

1. “Meaning of
Culture,
Mechanism and
Functions”
by: Group 1

3. Various Definition of Culture
● He defined that a
culture is a complex
whole which includes
knowledge, beliefs,
arts, laws, morals,
customs and
capabilities and habits
acquired by man as a
member of society.

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5. ● “ Culture is man’s social heritage which has
been transmitted from one generation to
another through language. It is a product of
human interaction.” (Palispis, 1996)
● Culture is a general design or recipe for living
or it is a vast social heritage. Culture includes
all the creation (material and non-material)
and the achievements of man, the past and the
present gains as a resut of living together.
Culture is simply defined as the way of life.
(Panopio & Rolda 1988)

6. ● “It is the way of life of the people in a given
place in a given period of time.”
● A social culture is an organized way of life
which is based on a common tradition and
conditioned by a common environment.
(Dawson, 1948)
● Culture comes from the Latin word “cultura or
cultus” - to care or cultivation.

7. Classification of Culture
Material Culture
● consists of human activity which is concrete,
tangible and observable. These objects are
manmade and called as “artifacts”.
● It is external and utilitarian.
● It is invented for human convenience.
● It contributes to the progress of society.
● It changes faster.

8. Non-material culture
● consist of intangible and abstract things like
customs, values, good will habits, beliefs, language
and etc.
● It is internal and don’t have physical existence.
● It changes very slowly.
● It is created taking the psychological basis of man
and reflects the inward nature of man.
● It has 2 aspects: Cognitive and Normative. Cognitive
deals with knowledge whereas Normative consist of
norms, rules and values.
● We can’t touch it.

9. Mechanism
of Culture

10. Folkways
● are customary behavior patterns which are
widely practiced, patronized, repetitive and
uniform in nature.
● They are common, typical or habitual modes of
thinking and doing of people within a
particular group or society.
● Folkways have no moral significance.
● It is just a routinary practice by people or
group.

11. Mores
● are folkways which must be observed and
practiced by the people or group for their
own welfare.
● It is vital for the people or group for their
identity and existence.

12. Laws
● are standardized mores which are enacted
by the proper authorities and carry
penalties when violated.
● Laws are needed to maintain peace and
order within a given society.

13. Institutions
● are mechanisms of culture
which are most stable,
uniform, formal and highly
structured.

14. Fashions, Fads and Crazes
● are social mechanisms of culture whose
influence is short-lived and not practiced by
the whole society or group.
● They are the perfect example of a fast
changing society especially in the urban and
industrial societies.

15. Functions of Culture

16. 1. Culture provides behavioral patterns.
2. Culture maintains the biological
functioning of the group.
3. Culture gives meaning and direction to
one’s existence.
4. Culture offers ready-made solutions to
man’s material and immaterial problems.
5. Culture develops man’s attitude and
values and gives him a good conscience.

17. Some important functions of Culture
● Culture Defines Situation.
● Culture defines Myths, Legends and
the Supernatural.

18. Dimension of Culture

19. Values
● are more abstract than norms. They
are the ideas that support or justify
the norms.
● A social shared ideas about what is
right.

20. Norms
● specific rules of behavior.
● Norms usually refer to behavior that
we either approve or disapprove of.

21. Laws
● are norms that are included in a
society’s official written codes of
behavior, often developed by a
specialized occupational group, such as
priests in the ancient world and
legislators, judges, ans lawyers in the
modern world.

22. Ideologies
● are set or system of ideas and norms
of which members and expected to
believe in and act upon without
question.

23. Technologies
● are the things (material culture) and
the norms for using them that are
found in a given culture.

24. Social Control
● refers to the set of rules and
understandings that control the
behavior of individuals and group in a
culture.

25. Characteristics
of Culture

26. 1. Culture is shared and transmitted.
1. Culture is social.
1. Culture is idealistic.
1. Culture satisfies human.
1. Culture tends to integrate the society.
1. Culture is cumulative.

27. Types of
Adaptation
of Culture

28. Parallelism
● refers to the independent development of
culture in two separated cultures.
Diffusion
● common practices being used repeatedly, back
and forth such as food preparation, religious
practices, rituals and festivities, w/c people in
the society commonly use.

29. Fission
● is a process that can be traced historically,
when such long-established society breaks up
into two or more independent units.
Convergence
● refers to the fusion of two or more cultures
into a new one which is somewhat different
from its predecessors.

30. Stages of
Cultural
Adaptation

33. 1.The Honeymoon Stage
● first stage experienced after arrival in a
new culture.
● there is some sort of excitement.
● the focus is on the sense of success being in
the new culture.
● there is curiousity and interest in the
novelty of the new surroundings.
● In this stage, you will feel energetic and
enthusiastic.

34. 2. Culture Shock Stage
● In this stage, the primary focus is on the
differences between one’s home culture
and the new culture together with the
conflicts that arise due to these
differences.

35. 3. The Recovery Stage
● This time, newcomer begins to regain a
sense of appreciation of the new culture.
● The new member begins to resolve some of
the conflicts they have experienced.
● The newcomer is able to have a better
understanding of external and internal
resources that help in managing demands
and conflicts that might arise in the future.

36. 4. The Adaptation Stage
● In this stage the newcomer has already
developed a realistic understanding of the
similarities and differences between his
home cultures and the new culture.
● The newcomer can now distinguish the
unique and particular culture in the society.
● He’ll become bicultural and its citizenship
becomes dual.